Investigation of the behavior of hollow block slabs under earthquake loads

This study aims to analyze the structural behavior of hollow block systems under seismic effects, which are frequently preferred in reinforced concrete structures. Although these slab systems offer significant architectural advantages, they also present certain structural weaknesses. In particular, increased structural weight and insufficient in-plane stiffness negatively affect the seismic performance of such systems. Within the scope of this thesis, seismic performance criteria such as natural vibration periods, interstory drift ratios, buckling behavior, and seismic displacements of reinforced concrete buildings with different slab systems were evaluated. All modeling and analyses were conducted using the STA4CAD software. The analysis results revealed that hollow slab structures exhibit lower lateral stiffness compared to ribbed slab systems, which leads to greater lateral displacement demands under earthquake loading. The findings indicate that hollow slab systems reduce the overall performance of buildings, especially in regions with high seismic risk and in cases where adequate shear walls are not integrated into the design. In this context, it has been concluded that both architectural and structural safety criteria should be considered when selecting a slab system during the design process.